-- 19 DAYS UNTIL THE REFERENDUM IN KRAKOW.

-- GERMAN MEDIA CRITICIZE MERZ FOR HIS REMARKS TO TRUMP AND AMERICANS - MICHAŁ KOKOT IN GW: “German media are criticizing Merz for his remarks to Trump and Americans. Bavaria's 'Süddeutsche Zeitung' writes about the Chancellor, whose words sometimes 'pour out from the depths of his heart, without going through his head'.

-- A SLUMP IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY MAY HAVE FURTHER NEGATIVE IMPACT ON THE GERMAN ECONOMY, WHICH IS PLAGUED BY STAGNATION - KOKOT CONTINUES IN GW: “This is not the end of the bad news for Germany. As of Monday (May 4th), American tariffs on cars and trucks imported from the European Union have increased from 15% to 25%. This is a major blow to the German automotive industry – companies like BMW and Porsche sell one in four cars in the United States. Sales had already collapsed after the introduction of 15% tariffs last year, but the industry had hoped at least for the situation to stabilize this year. A slump in the automotive industry may have a further negative impact on the German economy, which is mired in stagnation. - If this leads to a trade war, we risk recession – warns Clemens Fuest, head of the Ifo Institute for Economic Research, in 'Bild'.https://wyborcza.pl/7,75399,32768910,ciety-jezyk-kanclerza-merza-wpedza-niemcy-w-klopoty-trump-zabiera.html

-- SZYNKOWSKI VEL SĘK ON TUSK'S WORDS REGARDING US SOLDIERS: A HARMFUL STATEMENT, A FATAL MISTAKE; PEŁCZYŃSKA-NAŁĘCZ ON US SOLDIERS: IF THEY ARE NOT TO BE IN GERMANY, AND SOME COULD BE IN POLAND, THEN FOR SECURITY IT'S OK - 300LIVE: https://300polityka.pl/pl/live/2026-05-05/

-- IT IS A MYTH THAT POLAND NEEDS A DIFFERENT SYSTEM. WHICH DOES NOT MEAN THAT BY FIGHTING WITH JUST A SLOGAN, KAROL NAWROCKI WON'T ACHIEVE ANYTHING - PIOTR ZAREMBA IN INTERIA: “There will most likely be no new constitution – let's be realistic. Of course, by calling for its adoption, Karol Nawrocki can gain political benefits. He will present himself as a reformer and Tusks' people as obstructors. That's why, if I were the current Prime Minister, I wouldn't shy away from a discussion about the system. But the polarization is probably too definitive. And Tusk is capable of talking only to himself.

-- IMAGINE TUSK AND HIS COALITION WITH UNLIMITED POWER. PARLIAMENTARY CONTROL OVER THEM WOULD BE PURELY NOMINAL - ZAREMBA CONTINUES: “But I have other reservations. I used to be a proponent of parliamentary majority rule, which has full influence over all sorts of decisions. Today, that belief has faded. Imagine Tusk and his coalition with unlimited power. Parliamentary control over them would be purely nominal. The center of power would supposedly be in the Sejm. But in reality, that power would do whatever it pleased, including harassing the opposition, as it openly shows. No one would stop it – especially after the Constitutional Court was dismantled by both parties.

-- ACTUALLY, THE CURRENT SITUATION IS THE SAFEST - ZAREMBA AGAIN IN INTERIA: “Actually, the current situation is the safest. A parliamentary government has instruments of governance, but the president has tools to correct some of its decisions. Of course, it's different when the president belongs to the same party as the parliamentary majority, but even then, though less often, they can manage to counter – remember Andrzej Duda's vetoes of judicial laws or 'lex Czarnek', during the PiS government. Indeed, such a system is prone to shocks. But no one gets absolute power. Given the current degeneration of Polish politicians, this is at least the lesser evil.https://wydarzenia.interia.pl/felietony/news-nowej-konstytucji-nie-bedzie-i-jest-niepotrzebna,nId,23472113

-- KAROL NAWROCKI IS GOING IN CIRCLES WITH POLES - MICHAŁ DANIELEWSKI ON POLITYKA WEEKLY'S PORTAL: “Indeed, Karol Nawrocki's pronouncements, who announced a 'new generation constitution for 2030' at Plac Zamkowy, while denouncing 'party and political arrangements that detach power from the nation' and demanding the concentration of power in one hand due to the 'security situation', should not be dismissed. We have known the President for a year, and it is not unreasonable to assume that he often fantasizes about himself in the role of an omnipotent and adored Father of the Nation. But this does not change the fact that trying to focus political debate around changing the fundamental law is a fruitless endeavor right now.

-- A SIGN OF THE NARRATIVE IMPOTENCE OF THE LAW AND JUSTICE ENVIRONMENT, A POLITICAL CAMP WHICH – WHATEVER ONE MAY SAY – HAS REGULARLY HAD CREATIVE POLITICAL AND PROGRAMMATIC IDEAS OVER THE LAST DECADE, IS TODAY CONSTRAINED BY THE RITUAL OF DENOUNCING THE 'FALL OF DEMOCRACY' - DANIELEWSKI CONTINUES: “But Nawrocki's constitutional initiative is also a sign of the narrative impotence of the Law and Justice camp. A political camp which – whatever one may say – has regularly had creative political and programmatic ideas over the last decade, is today constrained by the ritual of denouncing the 'fall of democracy' ordered by 'dictator Tusk'. And if anything else manages to break through to public opinion, it's the dubious quality messages from Przemysław Czarnek, who either says something about 'OZE-sroze' (a dismissive term for renewable energy), or advises young people to start families and reproduce, instead of justifying their reproductive passivity with trifles like the lack of housing. Nawrocki, posing as a strongman, also in fact has nothing positive to convey, concentrating on justifying further vetoes of laws emerging from parliament.https://www.polityka.pl/tygodnikpolityka/kraj/2341603,1,notatnik-polityczny-gdy-nie-wiesz-co-mowic-mow-o-nowej-konstytucji-jak-karol-nawrocki-zawraca-polakom-gitare.read

-- AT SOME POINT, SOMEONE WILL HAVE TO TELL VOTERS THAT THE BILL FOR YEARS OF GENEROSITY HAS JUST ARRIVED - WITOLD GADOMSKI IN GW: “In the longer term, this leads to an increase in debt and the risk of a public finance crisis. If the pace of spending growth continues, governments may face the need for a sharp belt-tightening. This will also be a problem for politicians themselves, who are building popularity today on handouts. At some point, someone will have to tell voters that the bill for years of generosity has just arrived.https://wyborcza.pl/7,75968,32765200,ida-wybory-polityka-rozdawnictwa-przyspiesza.html

-- BIRTHDAYS: Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska, Witold Waszczykowski, Witold Kołodziejski, Kamil Dziubka, Justyna Kosela.